{"id":"01KG8AJNC7X2JAS04XFX884GMV","cid":"bafkreie7exrwsqejrrbznr55dob7lvmyruxopgjtggktl762hb3fdwzona","type":"segment","properties":{"description":"# A Dirge for McPherson,[13]\n\n## Overview\n\"A Dirge for McPherson,[13]\" is a poem that appears as a segment within a larger collection. It was extracted from the file `battle_pieces_and_aspects_of_the_war.txt` and is part of the \"Melville Complete Works\" collection. The poem is dated July 1864 and commemorates McPherson, who was killed in front of Atlanta.\n\n## Context\nThis poem is included in the collection \"[Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War.](arke:01KG8AJ6FNQ0XKWBY52P8DRPC9)\", a work by Herman Melville. The collection was extracted from the file \"[battle_pieces_and_aspects_of_the_war.txt](arke:01KG89J1G8S4TRWXNCBRKCRKS8)\" and is part of the broader \"[Melville Complete Works](arke:01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW)\" collection. This specific poem follows \"[The Eagle of the Blue.[12]](arke:01KG8AJNC7Q1G8RJSW9Q18QAW7)\" and precedes \"[At the Cannon’s Mouth.](arke:01KG8AJNCEX4VV3K5MRD445X1V)\".\n\n## Contents\nThe poem is a lament for General James Birdseye McPherson, a Union Army officer killed during the Battle of Atlanta in July 1864. The verses describe military funeral rites, including reversed arms, muffled drums, and a procession to the grave. It reflects on the transient nature of human life (\"Man is noble, man is brave, / But man’s--a weed\") and the enduring nature of fame, likening McPherson to Sarpedon, a hero from Homer's *Iliad*.","description_generated_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:27.646Z","description_model":"gemini-2.5-flash-lite","description_title":"A Dirge for McPherson,[13]","end_line":2588,"extracted_at":"2026-01-30T20:47:35.910Z","extracted_by":"structure-extraction-lambda","label":"A Dirge for McPherson,[13]","source_file":"01KG89J1G8S4TRWXNCBRKCRKS8","start_line":2546,"text":"A Dirge for McPherson,[13]\r\nKilled in front of Atlanta.\r\n(July, 1864.)\r\n\r\n\r\nArms reversed and banners craped--\r\n    Muffled drums;\r\nSnowy horses sable-draped--\r\n    McPherson comes.\r\n\r\n      _But, tell us, shall we know him more,\r\n      Lost-Mountain and lone Kenesaw?_\r\n\r\nBrave the sword upon the pall--\r\n    A gleam in gloom;\r\nSo a bright name lighteth all\r\n    McPherson’s doom.\r\n\r\nBear him through the chapel-door--\r\n    Let priest in stole\r\nPace before the warrior\r\n    Who led. Bell--toll!\r\n\r\nLay him down within the nave,\r\n    The Lesson read--\r\nMan is noble, man is brave,\r\n    But man’s--a weed.\r\n\r\nTake him up again and wend\r\n    Graveward, nor weep:\r\nThere’s a trumpet that shall rend\r\n    This Soldier’s sleep.\r\n\r\nPass the ropes the coffin round,\r\n    And let descend;\r\nPrayer and volley--let it sound\r\n    McPherson’s end.\r\n\r\n      _True fame is his, for life is o’er--\r\n      Sarpedon of the mighty war._\r\n\r\n\r\n\r","title":"A Dirge for McPherson,[13]"},"relationships":[{"peer":"01KG8AJ6FNQ0XKWBY52P8DRPC9","peer_type":"poetry_collection","predicate":"in"},{"peer":"01KG89J1G8S4TRWXNCBRKCRKS8","peer_type":"file","predicate":"extractedFrom"},{"peer":"01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW","peer_type":"collection","predicate":"collection"},{"peer":"01KG8AJNC7Q1G8RJSW9Q18QAW7","peer_type":"segment","predicate":"prev"},{"peer":"01KG8AJNCEX4VV3K5MRD445X1V","peer_type":"segment","predicate":"next"}],"ver":3,"created_at":"2026-01-30T20:47:38.887Z","ts":"2026-01-30T20:48:27.885Z","edited_by":{"method":"manual","user_id":"01KFF5C36SQEVDHC9CBNZZJH9K"}}